Under a law referred to as the Weingarten Rights, the US Supreme court ruled in 1975 that employees have a right to union representation at investigatory interviews.  Employees sometimes confuse the Weingarten rules with the Miranda rules.  However, there is a big difference between the two rules.  Under the Miranda rules, police who question criminal suspects must notify them of their right to remain silent and to have an attorney present during questioning.  Under the Weingarten law, employers have NO obligation to inform the employees of their rights to union representation.  The employee must ask for union representation in such meetings.

During an investigatory interview, the Supreme Court ruled that the following rules apply:

Rule 1:  The employee must make a clear request for union representation before or during the interview.  The employee cannot be punished for making this request.

Rule 2:  After the employee makes the request, the employer must choose from among three options.  The employer must either:

·        Grant the request and delay questioning until the union representative arrives and has a chance to consult privately with the employee, or

·        Deny the request and end the interview immediately, or

·        Give the employee a choice of having the interview without representation or ending the interview.

Rule 3:  If the employer denies the request for union representation, and continues to ask questions, it commits an unfair labor practice and the employee has a right to refuse to answer.  The employer may not discipline the employee for such a refusal.

Investigatory interviews can relate to subjects such as:

• Absenteeism
• Accidents
• Compliance with work rules
• Damage to company property
• Drinking
• Drugs
• Falsification of records
• Lateness, poor attitude
• Poor work performance
• Sabotage
• Slowdowns
• Theft
• Violation of safety rules

Having a steward/committeeperson present can help in many ways.  They can:

• Serve as a witness to prevent supervisors from giving a false account of the conversation.
• Object to intimidating tactics or confusing questions.
• Advise (when appropriate) an employee against blindly denying everything.  Thereby giving the appearance of dishonesty and guilt.
• Help an employee to avoid making fatal admissions.
• Warn an employee against losing his or her temper.
• Raise extenuating factors.

In July 2000, the National Labor Relations Board under the Clinton administration extended the Weingarten Rights to employees at non-unionized workplaces, but by June 15, 2004, under the Bush administration, the NLRB effectively reversed the previous ruling.